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Eliminating corporal punishment - A human rights imperative for Europe's children sheds light on the controversial issue of corporal punishment of children.It approaches this topic from four different angles: the legal and human rights obligation, as defined by regional and international conventions and agreements, to ban corporal punishment of children; the status of corporal punishment in European countries today; recent research results on its effects and prevalence, including how children see it; and the abolition of corporal punishment as a process, entailing changes in law, policies and public opinion.Physical punishment is an accepted form of child discipline in far too many countries, and challenging this widespread form of violence against children may be unpopular with both politicians and parents. Yet hitting children, even mildly, is a violation of children's basic human rights - the right not to be subjected to degrading treatment or punishment and the right to equal protection under the law.This work is for child and family professionals, government decision makers and a public motivated to learn more about this topic. For those already convinced, this book will add fuel to their convictions and provide substantiated arguments for abolition; for others, it is to be hoped that it will enable them to understand better the inherent legal and moral contradiction of disciplining children with violence.

Eliminating corporal punishment - A human rights imperative for Europe's children sheds light on the controversial issue of corporal punishment of children.It approaches this topic from four different angles: the legal and human rights obligation, as defined by regional and international conventions and agreements, to ban corporal punishment of children; the status of corporal punishment in European countries today; recent research results on its effects and prevalence, including how children see it; and the abolition of corporal punishment as a process, entailing changes in law, policies and public opinion.Physical punishment is an accepted form of child discipline in far too many countries, and challenging this widespread form of violence against children may be unpopular with both politicians and parents. Yet hitting children, even mildly, is a violation of children's basic human rights - the right not to be subjected to degrading treatment or punishment and the right to equal protection under the law.This work is for child and family professionals, government decision makers and a public motivated to learn more about this topic. For those already convinced, this book will add fuel to their convictions and provide substantiated arguments for abolition; for others, it is to be hoped that it will enable them to understand better the inherent legal and moral contradiction of disciplining children with violence.

ForewordSummaryReader's guide

1. Human rights obligations to end all corporal punishment of childrenIntroductionThe United Nations global deadline for prohibitionThe European Convention on Human Rights - developing case lawThe European Committee of Social Rights - monitoring conformity with the European Social Charter The Committee of Ministers - recommendations to end corporal punishmentThe United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and its monitoring body the Committee on the Rights of the ChildThe United Nations Secretary-General's study on violence against childrenOther international human rights instruments and their monitoring mechanisms

2. Progress towards ending corporal punishment of children in Council of Europe member statesBackground to abolitionThe 16 member states with explicit abolition of all corporal punishmentProgress towards abolition in other European statesThe European Network of Ombudspersons for Children

3. Lifting the veil - making corporal punishment of children visible Accumulating evidence of corporal punishment's ill-effectsResearch on corporal punishment's prevalence in the family Research on the impact of Sweden's law reforms Researching children's views and experiences

4. Eliminating corporal punishment of children - the processLaw reform to abolish all corporal punishment Enforcing abolition Implementing laws against corporal punishment within the familyAwareness-raising and public educationSupporting parents and parentingAdvice, counselling and advocacy services for childrenIntegrating the ending of corporal punishment into strategies to challenge domestic or family violenceMonitoring the effectiveness of protection

Selected reading - learn more

Appendices I. Parliamentary Assembly Recommendation 1666 (2004) on a Europe-wide ban on corporal punishment of childrenII. Recommendation Rec(2006)19 of the Committee of Ministers to member states on policy to support positive parentingIII. General observation of the European Committee of Social Rights - extract